Estrada denies all allegations against him

Estrada denies all allegations against him

MANILA (AP): President Joseph Estrada denied all accusations
against him in a brief response Friday to the impeachment
complaint under which he will be tried by the Senate starting
next week on corruption and other charges.

Estrada is accused in the 270-page articles of impeachment of
bribery, graft and corruption, betrayal of the public trust and
violation of the constitution. Most of the charges are based on
accusations by a provincial governor that he received millions of
dollars from operators of an illegal numbers game and from excise
taxes intended for tobacco farmers.

In his 16-page response, Estrada's lawyers argued that the
charges do not constitute impeachable offenses and insisted he
had been "faithful to his oath of office."

"They are denying everything," said Senate legal counsel David
Yap. "They are denying the fact that this complaint meets the
requirements of a complaint."

Eleven members of the House of Representatives who will act as
prosecutors in the Senate trial, which begins next Thursday, now
have five days to reply to Estrada's response.

Estrada will be removed only if at least two-thirds of the 22
senators vote to convict him. Currently he is believed to have a
narrow margin of support for remaining in office.

Rep. Roan Libarios, one of the 11 prosecutors, said Estrada's
brief and general response to the charges was expected.

"We even thought they will not file an answer so that they
will not be pinned down on their specific line of defense," he
said.

The prosecutors asked the Senate on Friday to allow an
inspection of several expensive mansions which Estrada is accused
of having acquired while in office for the use of his mistresses.

They also requested subpoenas for several witnesses, including
Estrada's son, bank officials, and a woman who allegedly kept
records of the gambling payoffs.

Senate President Aquilino Pimentel has said he believes the
trial can be finished by the end of December, but other senators
think it may take until at least January.

Many business and labor groups are demanding that Estrada step
down to avoid a lengthy legal process that could further damage
the country's economy by hurting business confidence.

Tens of thousands of people protested Thursday in cities
throughout the Philippines urging Estrada to resign, and
threatened civil disobedience if he refuses.

Estrada replied that he would await the outcome of the
impeachment trial.

But in his response on Friday, he argued that the impeachment
complaint should be thrown out because much of the evidence
consisted of newspaper clippings.

"Many of the specifications are in newspaper articles which
cannot take the place of allegations of ultimate facts," the
response said.

On Tuesday, the Senate rejected a motion from Estrada's
lawyers that the case be rejected on technical grounds because
the House of Representatives never voted before forwarding the
impeachment complaint to the Senate for a trial.

Estrada has acknowledged that he was offered a bribe by the
governor, Luis Singson, but said he refused it. The money,
however, was later given to an Estrada aide and deposited in the
bank account of a foundation for scholarships for Muslim youth.

Estrada's brother-in-law heads the foundation, which has never
awarded any scholarships.